Night Owl Cards

  Who am I kidding here? I can't evaluate the card year in 1995! There were 33 major releases in 1995. There were two sets with rounded corners! Two! Apparently card companies didn't hear that the World Series was canceled the year prior. But I did. I bought three packs of Topps in 1995. And then I exited, closed the door and didn't return to the hobby for a decade. My enthusiasm for this year in card collecting is very low. But it's not as low as for 1996 (foreshadowing). I'm incapable of an exhaustive breakdown of most of the sets from '95. I refuse to cover all 33. There were some suggestions to break it down in various ways, maybe cover the basic sets, and then a separate post for the premium sets and super premium ones. Yuck. I don't even like referring to sets as "premium" and "super premium." So this is the problem. I want to evaluate a year by old-collecting means that doesn't fit into those standards. In 1994, I tried to take...

This is well-traveled territory, but I'm trying to make a determination for myself. So, consider this an internal conversation, and if you still want to come along, well, welcome to the random meanderings of my brain. I make a lot of noise on this blog about how much I enjoy variety. In fact, going back years and years, before this blog, before the internet, I've often said how much I like variety. I like choices. Food buffets -- and yes, now I've mentioned food buffets on consecutive posts -- are terrific. Going to the paint store is a joy because I can look at all of the color samples. I enjoy city living, because the options for entertainment are so varied and fit any mood I have. And, as far as baseball cards, you know that my collection includes vintage, modern, oddball, whatever you like. But do I really like variety? I get confused shopping in the grocery store. If I have to buy something with which I'm not familiar -- say, yogurt or coffee supplies -- the...

Hey, it's not me. The polls said it. As you'll remember, I wanted to know the biggest year-to-year improvement in Upper Deck's history and the biggest year-to-year bust, too. Well, 1994 Upper Deck came up the loser in each poll. Here are the results: Biggest Bust 1993 to 1994: 13 votes 1989 to 1990: 4 votes 1997 to 1998: 3 votes 1999 to 2000: 3 votes Biggest Improvement 1994 to 1995: 12 votes 1992 to 1993: 6 votes 2007 to 2008: 3 votes 2002 to 2003: 2 votes Not a ton of votes there, but I thank those who checked the little boxes. Look, 1994 Upper Deck isn't the worst base set UD ever put out. I think it's a lot better than some of those late '90s things they produced. In terms of photo quality, it's an improvement over some of UD's earlier sets, too. 1994 Upper Deck simply had the misfortune to appear between two of the most pleasing Upper Deck sets it ever produced -- the near perfect '93 set and the simplistic beauty of...

Dayf pretty much obliterated my 2010 Topps want list today. If I can believe that want list, I am down to needing just two cards to finish series 1 of the base set. One card, No.183, which features the very low-key Jonathan Papelbon, is being sent to me. That would leave one card left. No. 120. That card happens to be Jorge Posada. Arrrrrgh. I can't tell you how many times the last card I needed to complete a set has been a Yankee. I'll have to do the research and get back to you on it. But I do know this: they're doing it on purpose. The Yankees don't like the fact that I live in New York and I'm not a Yankee fan. Sorry, Yankees, it's my obligation to stay as close to you as possible to keep updated on all of your nefarious activity, so I can remind everyone just how evil you are. But that's no reason to withhold cards of your whiniest players from me. Anyway. Posada. Anybody got (gasp, wheez, guuuuhhh!) one to spare? Emphasis on one. Meanwhile, in...